His Every Fantasy (2 page)

"Back to work we all go ladies. The store will
be open soon and it is our busiest weekend of the year!" Emmitt lit
right up like a kid in a candy store and clapped his hands together
in delight.

"Please don't remind me." Mandy grumbled and
tried to hold onto her endorphin high for a few more minutes,
before anxiety took hold and ruined her day. She had learned long
ago how to completely hide her inner turmoil and put on a mask for
the rest of the world to see.

"Okay. Go and hide in your office sweetie and
just relax with your ledgers. We both know working with numbers
equals happiness in your world." Nicole joked and
chuckled.

"Only because they're predictable and not
complex or confusing like people are." Mandy grumbled again and had
her friends laughing again. She walked off in a pretend huff and
called back over her shoulder, "I really felt the love there guys.
Thanks. I appreciate it," and chuckled.

"Anytime, honey!" Nicole and Emmitt called out
simultaneously and fell into each other laughing.

Mandy shook her head and smiled as she
continued on to her office. She loved their shared jokes and
playful banter, even if it was at her expense and only because they
both knew her so well, flaws and all, yet loved her
anyway.

Hidden away in her office, Mandy looked out of
her large one way mirror window to see Emmitt heading back to his
counter to make more goodies while Nicole walked away to unlock the
door for the line of waiting customers. Mandy was grateful to
Emmitt and Nicole both. She hated to think what would have become
of her and her life without their friendship and unwavering
support.

Every so often as the hours passed by, Mandy
glanced up to see the store was just as busy as it had been when
they had first opened the doors that morning. It was as if the
steady stream of people had drifted right out of the woodwork,
there were so many. It was becoming too busy for her friends to
handle alone. She took the initiative and called in Emmitt's part
time helper Meg who agreed to come right in. She then called Paula,
their part time help at the bookstore who said she could not come
in for at least another hour. Mandy thanked her and asked her to
come in then. With a heavy sigh, she knew it was time for her to
put on her mask of civility, shove her anxiety deep down, lock the
door and step out of her comfort zone. Nicole more than deserved
her hour long lunch break while there was a temporary lull in the
stream of customers.

With her back as straight as a board, heart
pounding in her chest and the anxiety stubbornly refusing to be
caged within, she sternly walked to the checkout counter and tapped
Nicole on the shoulder. She waited until Nicole finished with her
current customer and then ordered her to take a lunch break while
she took over in her absence.

Nicole saw the none too subtle shake in
Mandy's hands and asked, "Are you sure? I don't really need one
today."

"I'm sure and yes you do. Don't be ridiculous,
I can handle this for a measly hour." A small nervous laugh burst
out of Mandy. "Besides, Paula will be here soon to help us out. Now
go on and scoot before I change my mind."

"In that case, you don't have to tell me
twice. I'm starving!" Nicole laughed and backed up with her hands
held up, palms out and watched as Mandy laughed and relaxed.
Job
done.

Mandy knelt down to check their stock of cash
register tape and make sure the special orders were lined up in
alphabetical order so they could be found easily by last name when
picked up.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of a throat
being cleared and she almost hit her head on the underside of the
marble counter when she jumped straight up and cursed under her
breath.

"Hmm. Now that I have your undivided
attention, I need your assistance, Miss ...."

Mandy froze in place, her body heating up and
heart threatening to slam right out of her rib cage while she
stared at the most beautiful man she'd ever laid eyes on. Long
shoulder length hair the color of light chocolate rested above and
around a face that had her mesmerized. This stranger had a strong,
sculpted face with high cheekbones, an angular jaw, deeply intense
ocean blue eyes and planes and shadows that she very much wanted to
explore. It was as if he had been created as the perfect God-like
specimen of man. He wore a pin-striped vest over bare muscled skin
with an old fashioned timepiece on a chain attached to the vest and
a pair of pin-striped slacks and black shiny shoes.

Her mouth felt as dry as the Sahara desert and
her lips parted while her body vibrated and her eyes glazed over
with instant heat. It took her a few seconds to regain control of
her instantaneous reaction to this god-like, mysterious,
intimidating and intense man who looked her over from head to toe
as she had just done to him.

"Mandy, sir. I'm....Mandy. What can I assist
you with, sir?" Realizing what she had said could be taken so many
different ways and how her voice had come out in a breathy tone,
her chest and face heated right up.

"Mmm. That
will
happen soon, I
guarantee it Mandy." He responded with a deep and gravelly,
sexy-as-sin voice.

Mandy visibly gulped hard and fought to regain
her composure. "Excuse me?" She uttered in a severe and stern voice
that was at complete odds with what her body desperately
wanted.

"I need a first edition copy of Mid Summer
Night's Dream. Can you procure that for me––Mandy?" He asked and
refused to comment further on his previous statement.

His intense stare made Mandy feel as if she
was the only woman in the whole world and as if he had just striped
her naked and liked what he saw. She intuitively knew a woman would
have no real secrets around this man. Her thoughts were interrupted
by a rude and snotty woman with a nasal high pitched voice who was
waiting in line behind the man and trying to catch his
eye.

"Hello! You want to move your ass along clerk
lady, so the rest of us can check out?!" She whined obnoxiously at
Mandy who glanced up to see no one else in line.

Mandy's temper flared to the forefront in an
instant, but before she could put the bitch in her place, the hot
stranger spoke up in a deep commanding, do as I say or else tone of
voice.

"Take a walk woman. Go and enjoy some coffee
or a cappuccino, right now." He growled and turned his eyes full of
anger on her and treated her as though she were no more than a
disobedient child who deserved to be reprimanded.

Even Mandy felt the insane urge to go and do
exactly what he said too, but forced herself to remain where she
was after one step. She was determined to prove she was strong and
stubborn-as-hell.

He turned his intense gaze back to her with a
smirk when he saw the step she had taken. "The book,
Mandy?"

Temper already riled up, Mandy decided she
didn't like the commanding tone of voice he was using on her and
snidely replied. "You actually expect all women to do exactly as
you command, don't you? Well, you can drop that damn tone with me,
sir."

"Yes, I do expect it. I'm still waiting for
the book Mandy and I'm impatiently waiting for your answer, still."
The gorgeous stranger gave her the same tone he had used on the
obnoxious customer.

"Stay here please. I believe I have one in
mint condition. I will go and get it for you....master!" She
growled at him through clenched teeth, her narrowed eyes ablaze
with hellfire as she stared at him a few moments longer than
necessary.
No man is ever going to get away with using such a
tone on me ever again, not without one hell of a fight!
Mandy
stomped off toward her office. "Master asshole, that is!" She
grumbled to herself along the way.

Right behind her, she heard, "I will enjoy
breaking your walls down, with extreme pleasure."

Mandy refused to give him the satisfaction of
turning around, sure it was all in her mind anyway. That is, until
she felt the heat of his intense gaze, the odd sensation warmed the
skin on her back and bum right through her clothes. It further
caused an unwanted shiver of desire to course through her body. She
momentarily stumbled before regaining her balance again and praying
the handsome stranger had not seen the incident.

In her office, Mandy bent over and retrieved
the book from the floor safe. She had purchased it on a whim a few
months before at an estate sale. "Go figure! Not only do I have to
deal with a crowd of people, I have to get the biggest asshole on
earth, used to commanding others and getting his way!" She angrily
mumbled to herself, urging the anger to overcome the unwanted and
unneeded desire.

"I will take that as a compliment, coming from
a sexy-as-hell uptight woman in desperate need of letting her hair
down and pulling her vanilla panties out of the wad she bunched
them in. Especially, since I can smell and nearly taste the
heavenly scent of her desire while I deeply appreciate the view of
her sweet ass in those slacks." The stranger growled seductively
from his position right behind her, where his muscular body now
nestled up against the backside of her own. He heard Mandy's sharp
intake of breath and felt her body unconsciously leaning backward
into his.

With the sound of that sexy-as-sin voice in
her ear, Mandy shivered hard again and momentarily lost control of
her self-righteous anger. She fell forward away from him onto her
hands and knees, unable to handle his body pressed against hers a
second longer. She was unaware that she had moved into a cowering
squat while she was trapped half in and half out of a flashback and
whispered,

"Please stop, sir. I'm so sorry I took so
long. I promise I will be right out." She whispered, her tone laced
with fear. Then moments later, she shook herself clear of the
flashback and allowed her anger at herself to surge forth when she
realized she had just let this stranger see her in her most
vulnerable state. No one was allowed to see her in such a state!
Mandy slowly straightened up and raised her head while she was
still turned away from him. She took a deep shaky breath and turned
to face him with her usual stern look and stoic mask of
civility.

"Here is your book, sir." She handed it out to
him and pulled her hand away the moment his thumb caressed hers.
She raised her arm toward the doorway. "After you,
mister....?"

Mandy watched the stranger's intense blue eyes
stare at her with concern and heat before he growled, "Jett
Damian," then turned and walked out of her office and straight to
the pay counter to wait. His cologne, Drakar Noir, permeated the
air around her in his absence. She walked to the doorway and
stopped. She closed her eyes and inhaled the heavenly scent, which
set her body aflame all over again. She quickly shut down the
fantasy that began to emerge in her mind as fast as it
started.

When Mandy slowly opened her eyes again, she
happened to glance up in the direction at the checkout counter,
feeling the need to get back out there and do her job and at the
same time, compelled to go to him. Her eyes meet Jett Damian's. He
was staring at her with an inferno of heat in his eyes if that was
possible and his lips turned up into a sexy smirk that turned her
legs to rubber and her brain to mush. She lightly smacked her own
cheek to break the spell Mr. Damian was putting over
her.

Mandy rushed out of the office, shutting the
door behind her and fast-walked to the pay counter. She cursed
herself for not being able to control her badly shaking hands.
Determined to regain her composure and dignity, Mandy gave Jett an
overly bright smile, stared him bravely in the eyes and said, "I'm
so sorry sir, were you waiting long?"

"Not at all, Mandy." Jett smiled and allowed
her to keep her dignity while she rang up the cost of his book.
When she told him the amount, he paid in cash, looked around then
handed her four business cards which were really VIP passes to his
club. In a seductive tone of voice, only loud enough for her to
hear he said, "When you are ready to let your hair down or if you
need––anything at all, use those passes to see me at my club. I
will look forward to seeing you there."
And I deeply want to see
that sensual tigress you keep locked up tighter than a bank vault,
set free.

"Humph! Don't get
your
boxers in a
bunch waiting for something that will never happen." Mandy retorted
back, clearly antagonized.

"Never say never, my little tigress and by the
way, I am not wearing any underwear, sexy." Jett smirked then
walked toward the exit having had the last word.

Mandy watched Jett stop and speak to a man in
a chauffer's outfit who waited next to the exit. They both turned
and stared at her before they finally walked out the door. Mandy
let out the breath, unaware she had been holding it in.

"Holy shit, that was intense!" Mandy whispered
under her breath and imagined Mr. Damian's look of shock if she
ever went to his club. It brought a smile to her face.

"Who was that yummy piece of man-meat?" Nicole
asked as she magically appeared at Mandy's side making her jump.
Together, they watched Mr. Damian's mouth watering firm bum walk
away and get into the awaiting limo just outside of the glass exit
door.